The strongest signal running through the global financial markets is currently emerging from China. Amid rising tensions between the US and China, and amidst concerns about currency instability across nations, China has chosen gold as the last bastion to protect its economy. This is interpreted not merely as a shift in investment preference, but as a strategic defensive shield being erected at the national level. Recent statistics reveal that China's gold imports are accelerating once again, a fact attracting the attention of global economic experts.
In March last year, it was confirmed that China imported a staggering 162 tons of gold from abroad. This figure not only set a new record since March 2024, but also demonstrates a consistent upward trend in imports for three consecutive months. Furthermore, the cumulative imports from the beginning of this year up to the present are massive, reaching approximately 365 tons. The background for securing such a huge volume is not only the fervent buying by private investors, but also the strong effect of strategic accumulation by institutions and at the national level.
The People's Bank of China, the central bank of China, announced that it secured 5 tons of gold in just one month last March, recording the largest purchase since February 2025. This is the result of the People's Bank increasing its gold reserves for 17 consecutive months, and China's official gold reserves have now reached 2,313 tons, once again setting a new record. Through this large-scale purchase, the Chinese authorities are clearly indicating their intention to reduce their holdings of US Treasury bonds in favor of expanding their holdings of physical assets like gold. This can be seen as a step in the "de-dollarization" drive to become independent from the US dollar-centric international financial order, and it reflects the will to reduce dependence on currency-based assets such as US Treasury bonds.
China's obsession with gold is also driven by internal economic instability. Amid the difficulties China's domestic economy is facing, such as the stagnation of the real estate market and the loss of growth momentum, investors are citing gold as the safest asset. This phenomenon has important implications not only for gold, but also for the market of Bitcoin, which is also called "digital gold." The rising prices and explosive demand for gold, a traditional safe asset, naturally increase interest in alternative assets, and there are continuous suggestions that Chinese capital may flow into digital assets as well as gold. In particular, with Hong Kong, which is actively cultivating the digital asset industry, such capital flows can accelerate, and it is expected to become a major variable in the future virtual asset market.